All the bags are packed ..again ~ Xativa here we come

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Friday morning we all get up bright and early as we have to be very organised for departure day. It seems almost impossible to think we begun our journey 2 weeks ago and we are about to begin our final leg of return.

M takes us out on a quick morning constitution around the surrounding streets of the luxury villas so we can say adios and take one last look at the life of opulence and luxury that the people in that area are living in.

Adios then to the Spanish style ‘Park Manor’..the magnificent villa that Roger and Elisabeth built in 2005 with love and care..or so the huge circular plaque on the wall proudly declared .To the coral tinged turrets of the stunning ‘Camelot’ hidden behind heavy oak gates with security cameras and broken glass topped walls.

As a simple westie who needs are fairly limited, it seems strange to me that humans build such glamorous homes and then seem to spend their time cowering behind the walls of those homes for fear of intruders. M commented that it seemed odd to come and live here and then ensconce yourself in a fortress of luxury ~ clearly the sun and sea are one thing but you still have to be careful wherever you are.

Anyway swiftly back to the villa and we need to be leaving by 8.30am so as to give ourselves plenty of time to get M & M back to the airport for their flight back to sunny Cardiff ( we have heard there is a big heatwave going on all over the UK).

The car is loaded to the gunnels and with little M in that pink seat in the middle of the back seat and her mum in the back seat as well, it means that either myself or Angus will have no option but to sit on a lap. Clearly sitting on little M is out of the question so I make the supreme sacrifice and elect to sit on Little M’s mum’s lap. This means Angus can resume normal travelling position of flat out and unconscious as soon as the car starts moving and I get better vantage point view …more than just the usual feet and legs going by….and maybe a quick pat and hug to boot. We say our goodbyes to the remaining family unit who are awaiting the arrival of the taxi and off we go….

Before we know it we are arriving at Malaga airport …the put down area is so very busy. Lots of men in uniform frantically waving arms and blowing whistles. Cars and taxis manoeuvring everywhere , horns blowing .Everything is done at a breakneck speed and before we know it M & M are out of the car, suitcases unloaded , quick kisses and hugs goodbye and then in a flash of pink clothes, sunglasses and suntan they were gone into the terminal building.

The air for just a moment hangs with a huge silence and I settle back into my normal viewing position, Angus has barely stirred, M & D are concentrating on getting the right road out of there and all of sudden its all behind us and we are on the road again.

Our route takes us up via Granada and round across towards the coast line of Costa Brava towards Valencia. Our plan is to stop at a place called Xativa . We are restricted to a couple of ‘pit stops’ to fuel up, take on fresh water a quick cup of coffee and a magnum ice cream and off we go again.

We stop at some kind of one horse town just off the main road on route to try and have something resembling a spot of lunch. D noticed an old UK white van lying abandoned in a nearby dilapidated old building. M & D had a joke that it looked a bit like a scene from a film based on one of those Stephen King novels where the hapless couple pull in to a town in the middle of nowhere and never leave…….we all decided a quick move on was the answer!

On route we also saw some interesting trike type mtorbikes. D thought they were really cool and thought he could see us travelling around on one of those…I don’t think M would like that too much…think of the havoc with the hair!

Late afternoon we arrive in Xativa. It looked an attractive town with a lot of ancient buildings. M knew our hotel was an old monastery near the castle. She raised her eyes up to the skyline on top of the small mountainside and there stood the castle. Ho Hum D said this will be fun negotiating a Land Rover Discovery up the steep narrow winding lanes. Fortunately the hotel was sign posted throughout the winding streets and there was little in the way of voices of dissention as to which way to go.

Even from a four short legs perspective, The Hospederia Mont Sant was just stunning. Ancient building with beautiful stunning gardens full of trees and a small water course running through it seemed just perfect. We were staying in a cabana in the garden . M & D could not believe it when they went in…it was just lovely with a view down through the trees , a balcony . The room was very large and best of all the whole building was like a log cabin and air conditioned! It may have been number 13 but there as nothing unlucky about it.

Bliss bliss bliss…after a rest to cool down and get ourselves all together we had a small stroll around the grounds. We found the Hospideria had 2 residents dogs who were friendly and non confrontational….phew what a relief. In fact we found one taking a dip in the ancient fresh water course so we decided after she had finished we would try it too…..ahhh… it was great fun and very cooling on the old hot tum and cooled the old paws down a treat..D Had to help us in and out as the old short legs were a bit of a handicap for the required manoeuvring. All around were an abundance of orange, lemon and lime trees..magnifico.

In the evening the hotel’s restaurant extended to the terrace and we all assembled under the shade of a tree for a beautiful candlelit dinner…..ok so I realise Angus and I got the usual feet and legs perspective but it was quite wonderful. As the sun set and the night sky drew in, the castle was illuminated and looked just spectacular.

M saved a bit of her fresh tuna for us but we were not too keen even though I am extremely partial to a spot of tinned tuna ! We all walked slowly back to our room taking in the stillness of the evening air and M & D retired to have a nightcap on the terrace. In our view this was as perfect as it could get and we all retired to bed and just did not wake in the night at all.